No-Nonsense Gnocchi With A Gnocchi Maker

It’s a stylish food popping up on restraint menus in the most popular restaurants, and the chefs on your favorite competition shows are especially fond of producing the small, tasty item: gnocchi. Now, however, you don’t have to head down to your favorite, albeit expensive, eatery to sample the delicate taste of newly made gnocchi; with a little skill in the kitchen and your very own gnocchi maker, you’ll be cooking up this dish in no time.

Though it may seem that gnocchi makers are a specialty item, they’re not that hard to get your hands on. First, though, you will have to decide which form you want your gnocchi pasta maker to take: board or machine. A gnocchi board is a wooden board used to roll your pasta in a more traditional way; they vary in quality and price. To save work, though, many chefs prefer a gnocchi machine; in this category there is even more variety. Either choice will allow you to produce the dish.

Manual Gnocchi Maker

After making your choice, you will find a number of options to choose from. If you’re on a budget, you might consider the board. These sell for less than ten dollars and can be purchased on online auction sites or at cooking supply stores; even boards imported from Italy are generally less than $20. If you prefer a machine, don’t worry, there are economical options there too. For example, AbestKitchen sells a Cavatelli maker (which also makes gnocchi) for around $35; it connects to your counter and is manual, so it requires a bit of elbow grease, but the product is well worth it.

Electric Pasta and Gnocchi Maker

If manual labor is not your thing, or if you’re a super-busy mom of three, then you may want to consider an automatic gnocchi maker. Most of these are labeled as simple “pasta makers”. You can go with the Ronco Popeil pasta maker plus the deluxe kit and create all types of pasta, it runs about $100 plus $50 for the kit, but it can automatically produce gnocchi pasta without rolling or mixing. Another great option is the Atlas Pasta Machine with Motor, which is made in Italy (app. $200).

Each of these options let you be creative. In both kinds of makers, you can add your own flavors, infusions, and creative touches, producing everything from spinach gnocchi to orange gnocchi. So stop paying an arm and a leg for restaurant pasta and get into the kitchen and make your own. It’s sure to be tasty!